Cajun Chicken Pasta

I made a delicious dinner tonight. It was a combination of a few recipes. I've been craving Cajun Chicken Pasta like what's served at several chain restaurants, but it's always made with heavy cream, which is like dumping a cup of fat into the pot. I made some modifications, and came up with this tasty alternative:

Cajun Chicken Pasta

2-3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite size pieces
1 box fettuccine or linguine
2 peppers, any color, cut into thin strips
1 tomato, seeded and diced
1 onion, diced
2 Tbs butter
1 Tbs olive oil
3 cloves garlic, diced or pressed
1 can evaporated skimmed milk
2 tsp or 1 cube chicken bouillon (dissolve cube in a little hot water)
Cajun seasoning
black pepper
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Cook pasta according to package directions.

While pasta is cooking, melt butter in a heavy skillet with olive until foamy. Sprinkle Cajun seasoning liberally over chicken. Cook chicken in butter and oil until no longer pink. Remove chicken to a plate. Add vegetables to hot skillet and cook for approx 1 minute, until peppers are crisp-tender. Return chicken to skillet. Add evaporated milk, bouillon, and Parmesan. Cook until sauce is bubbly and slightly thickened. This won't take long. Combine chicken and sauce mixture with pasta. Sprinkle with black pepper and additional Cajun seasoning if desired. This made enough for two dinners for my family of three. Enjoy!

I Ain't No Quitter

Hello from the Franklin house. My pledge to update more often hasn't worked out so well. Seeing as this is my journal, here's a look into a week in my life right now. Let's look at next week's schedule, shall we?

Sunday: Small group-9:30, Church-10:45, Hanging out with Greg and Carson-afternoon, Studying-evening
Monday-Leave house at 8:00 for 10:00 appt in Caruthersville, work in Caruthersville until 1:00, drive to Cape, stop at office briefly, meet with teachers in Cape at 3:30, see theapy kiddo from 4:15-5:15, drive to Jackson for 6:00 Weight Watchers meeting until 6:30, cook dinner, do homework, sleep
Tuesday-Leave at 7:30 for 9:00 appointment in Poplar Bluff, work in Poplar Bluff until 1:00, drive back to Cape and stop at office briefly, see therapy kiddo from 4:15 to 5:15, grab dinner, go to class from 6:30-9:30, come home, sleep
Wednesday-Answer office phones from 8-4. Rush across campus to teach class from 4:15-7:00, come home, cook dinner, study, bed
Thursday-Work in office 8:00-9:00, drive to Fredericktown for lunch meeting and training, drive back to Cape, see therapy kiddo from 4:15-5:15, go to class from 6:30-9:20, come home, sleep
Friday-Drive to Advance to see therapy kiddo from 9:00-10:00, drive from Advance to Oak Ridge, do practicum hours at Oak Ridge from 12-4, drive home and grab stuff for scrapbooking from 6:30-11:00
Saturday-not yet scheduled, but sure to be a full day of housecleaning, grocery shopping, and general catch-up work

I've been feeling a bit over scheduled lately. I may have even given a fleeting thought to not going to school anymore. However, when I look at the amount of "stuff" I have to do every week and realize that I am actually doing it all and doing most of it pretty well, I start to feel better. I keep reminding myself that I will likely never be taking two night classes and teaching a night class in the same week ever again after this semester, and I start to feel better. I remind myself that when I finish this program, I will be working in a field I find exciting and I'll be helping people in a whole new way, and I start to feel better. I remind myself that week after next is midterm and I'll be halfway through this hellish schedule and I start to feel better. I remind myself that, " I ain't no quitter," and everything is temporary and I start to feel better. I remind myself that Greg and Carson are handling my absence and my crabbiness when it's study time very well, and I start to feel better.

My hope is that a year from now when I'm nearing the end of this program, or possibly finished with it, I am going to feel such a huge sense of accomplishment. I hope that I can look back on this time when I'm feeling overwhelmed in the future and remember that I did all this "stuff" and survived.

Pep talk over. I've got studying to do.

Cooking Up a Storm

Actually, that would be cooking after a storm. We decided to stay home today due to the 10 inches of snow that fell yesterday. Southeast Missouri does not deal well with 10 inches of snow. Greg did dig the van out and go to the gas station for iced tea, but otherwise we stayed home...and cooked...and cooked..and cooked some more!

Last night I made a chicken noodle casserole with broccoli and a yummy cheese sauce. Greg made the salad.

This morning Greg made apple cinnamon muffins for breakfast. They turned out very tasty.

For lunch, I made patty melts and skillet fried potatoes. The patty melts turned out great. I even whipped up some garlic mayo to go with them.

Tonight, I made the perfect lasagna and some awesome garlic cheese pizza bread from scratch. The crust turned out great. Here is the recipe.

Here is the lasagna recipe. It takes a lot less prep than most lasagnas and the consistency comes out perfect. Do not boil the noodles ahead of time. I quit boiling noodles several years ago and haven't had lasagna come out soupy since. I also use cream cheese because I always have it on hand and I like the texture better than ricotta or cottage cheese.

Easy Lasagna

1 box lasagna noodles (I use whole wheat)
2 blocks cream cheese, softened
2 eggs
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
2 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded
1 26 oz jar spaghetti or marinara sauce
1 pound ground beef, browned and drained
1 large or 2 small cans mushrooms
1 1/2 cups water

Heat oven to 350. Brown beef. Drain and return to skillet. Add sauce, mushrooms, and water. Simmer for 10 minutes. Mix cream cheese, eggs, 1 cup mozzarella and parmesan cheese in a bowl until smooth. Spray a deep 9x13 pan with cooking spray. Spread 1 cup of sauce in bottom of pan. Add a layer of lasagna noodles. Add 1/2 of remaining sauce and spread over noodles. Top sauce with cream cheese mixture and spread evenly over sauce. Repeat layers. Top with remaining mozzarella. Cover with foil and bake for 45 minutes. Uncover and bake 10 minutes or until cheese browns. Let stand 10 minutes before cutting.

The added benefit of all this cooking is that I now have lunches and dinners to take with me to work, especially for those nights when I go straight from work to class. I divide the leftovers into individual portions and store them in the freezer.

Carson played in the snow for a grand total of 30 minutes, spread over two trips outside. You would have thought he had just returned from climbing Mt. Everest when he came back inside. He informed me that he had "winter freeze." This is apparently a condition that can only be cured by drinking hot chocolate and watching Star Wars movies. Luckily, we had both on hand.

I'm looking forward to starting a new small group at church tomorrow morning. Our church is starting a new series called Life's Healing Choices. It's an 8 week study and our pastor will also be delivering a sermon to go along with each week's lesson. We'd love to have you!

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

Snowstorms and Scrapbooks

It is snowing up a storm here in Jackson, MO! Carson came home early from school and Greg came home early from work. We're enjoying a snowy afternoon inside.

I'm recovering from a 24 hour flu virus and have started feeling much better in the last few hours. I came home from work yesterday around 1:00 feeling terrible and had a rough evening. Much better now!

I'm still trying to figure out digital scrapping, but I did manage to make another layout today. There are lots of free kits to download on the internet. Many of the kits are premade pages ready for you to plop pictures into the predesigned layouts. I love the ease of these type of kits, but I'm trying to download lots of individual elements to force myself to figure out how to put them into a page using Photoshop. I have a lot more learning to do, but here is today's creation.


I'm off to watch the Disney World vacation planning DVD that arrived today and to do a little dreaming for our trip. We leave on May 26th!!! Enjoy the weekend!

My first digital layout

Today I spent most of the afternoon trying to teach myself the basics of digital scrapbooking. I can't say that I have anywhere close to a good understanding of how to scrapbook in Photoshop Elements, but I figured out enough to crop the picture in the layout above and add each individual element in separate layers. I had never used Photoshop until this afternoon, but I think I'm going to have to buy it. I downloaded the trial version today to play around with the program. I found several useful Youtube tutorials, that would have been even more useful if I had some clue as to what they were talking about. I am very computer illiterate if I need to do anything other than type a paper, send an email, or surf the web. This is going to be an adventure!

I love paper scrapbooking and I'm sure I will continue to scrap with paper if I manage to figure out the digital side. I am a little concerned about where I will store all of the scrapbooks I'll accumulate if I continue doing everything with paper. I would also love to be able to share my digital albums with others on the web. We'll see how much progress I make!

I would love to hear from anyone who has gone from paper scrapping to digital. If anyone has hints on using Photoshop elements, that would be great too!

I'm headed into a super busy week, with obligations every night until Friday. It's good to back in a routine. Have a great week!

Baby Girl, Mickey Mouse, and Education

Things have been eventful since my last post! On January 5, I became an aunt to a sweet new baby girl! Olivia Marie Penny is my first niece. We think she's gorgeous. She'll likely be having some surgery soon.Please keep her in your prayers.

Last week we were invited by Greg's parents on a trip to Disney World in May. We're very excited! Greg's brother, Jim, and our nephew, Andrew will be going too. We'll be there during a Star Wars weekend, which is like winning the lottery for Carson. He's so excited that he can barely talk about anything else. I'm thinking we'll be making a countdown calendar this weekend so he'll stop asking us when we're going every other minute. We all love Disney!

Next week I'll be starting the dreaded semester of taking two night classes, teaching one night class, and completing a practicum. I'm trying to be optimistic about things and tell myself that I'll be so busy that the semester will fly by. I'm looking forward to learning more about applied behavior analysis and getting some hands on experience in my practicum.

I'll be enjoying my last day of freedom tomorrow while Carson is at school. I haven't decided if I want to read all day, scrapbook, watch tv, or a little of all three. I'll be hanging out with my girls tomorrow night for our monthly crop. Can't wait!

Have a fantastic weekend!

Christmas 2009

2009 in Review

1. What did you do in 2009 that you'd never done before? Employed a cabana boy. It was fabulous.
2. Did you keep your new years' resolutions, and will you make more for next year? I can't remember making any last year.
3. Did anyone close to you give birth? Greg's cousin, Amy, had a baby boy in November. My sister-in-law, Rachel, is due Jan 10.
4. Did anyone close to you die? My uncle, Eddie, died of pancreatic cancer in December.
5. What countries did you visit? Mexico on a cruise with my mom and my girlfriends. We had so much fun!
6. What would you like to have in 2010 that you lacked in 2009? dedication to get healthy
7. What date from 2009 will remain etched upon your memory, and why? Tuesday, Dec 15-the day I got my diabetes diagnosis
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year? managing to stay sane and keep my house relatively in order while working 2 jobs and going back to school
9. What was your biggest failure? Gaining weight...again. I'm now back on track and feeling great!
10. Did you suffer illness or injury? Did I ever! I had swine flu, strep throat, blood pressure issues, pneumonia, and a few rounds of stomach virus. This was the sickest year I remember.
11. What was the best thing you bought? A cruise ticket
12. Whose behavior merited celebration? Greg's-he has the patience of Job and never says a word when I throw a fit or leave him with Carson while I go off to Mexico for a week.
13. Where did most of your money go? To restaurants, which is so stupid and will not be happening this year.
14. What did you get really, really, really excited about? My trips to Mexico and Chicago.
15. What song will always remind you of 2009? While I'm Waiting by John Waller. It reminds me to have patience, which I sorely lack.
16. What do you wish you'd done more of? Hung out with Carson
17. What do you wish you'd done less of? Eat
18. How did you spend Christmas? With 5 celebrations spread out over a week...a little too much for my taste.
19. Did you fall in love in 2009? I celebrated 10 years of marriage and 13 years of being in love
20. What was your favorite TV program? Lost and So You Think You Can Dance, but I really cut back on TV this year
21. What was the best book you read this year? I read the whole Sookie Stackhouse series and loved them..perfect escape from the textbook I basically had to memorize.
22. What was your greatest musical discovery? I downloaded lots of different kinds of music from So You Think You Can Dance
23. What did you want and get for Christmas? A camera and I got it!
24. What was your favorite film of this year? I loved The Blind Side
25. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you? I was 33 this year. I went to Red Lobster with the family and had a pretty quiet celebration.
26. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying? Having lost a ton of weight and avoiding the diabetes diagnosis.
27. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2009? Dark jeans, layered sweaters, and a little more jewelry than I've worn in the past.
28. What kept you sane? Girlfriends..I love my scrapping and Bunco buddies
29. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most? none that I can think of
30. What political issue stirred you the most? Health care
31. Who did you miss? My Utah friends.. I would love to go see them this year. Miss you all!
32. Who was the best new person (people) you met? We became closer with several people from church and have enjoyed great fellowship getting to know them better.
33. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2009: The only thing certain is change and it's how we respond to it that matters.
34. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year: I will move ahead, bold and confident.
    

I finally remembered to post pics from the last couple of weeks. We had a huge winter storm and had snow and ice on the ground for over a week. Everything finally melted today. Above are pictures of Carson and the neighbor girls playing in the snow. They had a great time. Carson screamed like a girl every time the girls pushed him on the sled.

Last Saturday we joined the Moore and McCoy families at the SEMO basketball game. It was Rowdy, the mascot's, 4 th birthday. The team lost, as usual lately, but we had a good time visiting together.

We had a busy weekend. Carson got to bring Mr. Bear, his class mascot, home for the weekend. We had to chronicle Mr. Bear's adventures in a journal that will go back to school with him on Monday. He went to Burger King and Target with the guys while I was scrapbooking on Friday with my First Friday girls. On Saturday he helped clean the house, then went to El Torero with us for dinner, where he tried to eat all of Carson's fried ice cream. Today he went to Sunday School, Delmonico's for lunch, and then to Carson's friend, Gio's, to play Star Wars all afternoon. Carson was Anakin, Gio was a transformer, and Mr. Bear was Yoda. He's now spending the night at MeMaw and PawPaw Franklin's with Carson.

Greg and I had another great small group lesson at church tonight. We have been blessed with an awesome group of new friends.

This week begins the Shape Up Southeast program at work. My office team, The Southeast Celery Sticks of Steel, is going for the win, which means I will need to work out every day for the next 10 weeks. I downloaded some rockin' workout songs from iTunes tonight and I'm ready to get moving!

Have a great week!

Greg and I have some sort of nasty, croupy cough and crud. I'm looking forward to staying home and doing nothing tomorrow. I feel a PJ and TV day coming on. I'm hoping to feel well enough to meet my girlfriends for some scrapping tomorrow night.

I had an uneventful trip to Jefferson City for my quarterly work meeting on Tuesday and Wednesday. I got the news that I will likely be made full time in July, which is good. I've been working 4 days a week at Child Care Resource and Referral and picking up some kiddos for therapy on Fridays. Hopefully, I'll still be able to work in my therapy kids with the new schedule. Nothing's definite when asking for state money, but it looks probable that this is going to happen.

In other news, I have recently become addicted to Facebook. I am starting to think I may have to impose some limits on my time spent sending Flair, tagging people, and updating my status. If you're on Facebook, look me up. I'm Amy Franklin in the St. Louis network. See ya online!

Easing back into things

I think Facebook is to blame for my lack of blogging. I see what everyone is doing everyday and post my own frequent updates, so I rarely even think of coming here to post anymore. I need to get back on track, so here are some updates:

I am teaching again. I decided to play hard ass this semester and let them know upfront that I will not accept junk papers that look like a 5th grader wrote them and that they will be required to attend the St. Louis field trip. 5 of them dropped the class as soon as they left that evening. I'm not taking it personally.

I'm planning a scrapbook retreat for my scrapping buddies and I can't wait! We'll be at an undisclosed (to husbands) location for three days at the end of March. Fun times ahead!

We recently joined a new small group at church and are having a great time and gaining so much from the lessons we're studying on showing Christ's love in our community. We knew many of the group members already, but have made some new friends too.

Greg is still enjoying his job, although the hours have gotten quite long since the ice storm on Tuesday. He's been working in southern Missouri to try to help restore power to the many communities devastated by the ice. Luckily, we never lost power at our house. He's scheduled for another 12-14 hour day tomorrow and may work again on Sunday.

Carson is enjoying his week off from school due to the winter storm. Although he likes staying home, he asks everyday when he can finally go back to school.

This little meme is from a blog that I enjoy. I've been reading Sophia's blog for several years and
enjoy her recipes, crafty projects, and words of wisdom. Check her out when you can.


8 TV Shows or Movies I watch regularly

1. Fringe
   
2. CSI
   
3. CSI:Miami
   
4. Criminal Minds
   
5. NCIS
6. 17 Kids and Counting
7. Iron Chef America
8. Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives
   

Eight things that happened yesterday

1. I stayed in my PJ's until noon.
2. I spent more than half the day on the internet (mostly facebook)
3. I talked to Greg at least a dozen times to make sure he wasn't frozen
4. I watched CSI
5. I rammed a snowbank with the car in order to get to El Torero
6. I looked at the dirty dishes, but did not wash them
7. I read Good Housekeeping magazine (where else can get recipes, decluttering tips and advice to spice up your love life?)
   
8. I stayed up until 1:00 am reading a very disturbing book
   

8 Favorite places to eat ( in no particular order)

1. El Torero
   
2. Chan's
   
3. Shogun
   
4. The King and I
   
5. Texas Roadhouse
   
6. Saffron
   
7. Stooges
   
8. Cheesecake Factory

8 Things I am looking forward to

1. My scrapbook retreat!
   
2. Going to the SEMO game with Becky, Shelly, and their families tomorrow night
3. The first Friday crop in one week
4. My tenth anniversary
5. A likely trip to Disney World in October
6. Valentine's Day
7. Getting back to the gym next week
8. Going out to eat as soon as I finish this list!
   

8 Things on my wish list

1. iTunes gift cards
   
2. A new Canon digital SLR
3. new floor tile
4. a trip to Disney World
5. a new couch
6. a new haircut, which I am getting Monday
7. a new Vera Bradley tote
   
8. new bedding for our room

8 People I tag... anyone who wants to participate!

Not Mine!

A little meme while I wait for my pot roast to cook. This is borrowed from Dawn. She's my Florida friend and Disney connection.


1. When did you last sleep in a bed outside your home?
the second week of November for 5 nights at my work retreat. I had to change rooms mid trip due to lack of heat in my first hotel room. Brrrr.

2. When did you last drive someone else’s car?
See answer #1. I drove a black Pontiac G6, courtesy of Enterprise. I actually drive rental cars often for work.

3. When did you last cook in someone else’s kitchen?
A week ago. My sister, Mom, and I had a Christmas treat extravaganza at Mom's.

4. When did you last care for children who aren’t yours?
My nephew, Riley, spent the night last Friday. I saw therapy kids on this past Friday morning.

5. When did you last do someone else’s job?
About three weeks ago, my friend and coworker, Christy, was home with a sick baby, so I drove over an hour to do a training she had scheduled. It did not go well. She owes me big. :)

I'ts Christmastime!

And time for another blog post. I really have no idea why my blogging mojo has become so sporadic in the last year. I read tons of other people's blogs every single day, yet completely abandon my own. Weird. I'm not even going to promise more regular posts, so you can be surprised and delighted if I get back into the swing of blogging.

First, the updates:

Greg really likes his job and his boss, which is a huge relief. What a difference to actually be told he's doing a great job and to be appreciated by his boss. Working outside in winter isn't so great, but getting to work from our house and set his own schedule is pretty nice. He's much happier in this position.

Carson is doing well in kindergarten and had a fantastic check-up at the eye doctor in Springfield 4 weeks ago. His eye movement has improved by 30%, which is a huge change. We love Dr. Pierce! Carson informed us at dinner last week that his job in Heaven will be to pack a lunch for Jesus each day, then guard his garden from monkeys, walruses, and penguins. Jesus does not eat out.

I am still scrapbooking, playing Bunco, working at SEMO, and saving the world, one dysfunctional family situation at a time. I love my work, and boy does it give me some stories to tell!

I've already attended 4 Christmas parties and have 6 to go. Have a great Friday and a Merry Weekend!

Mum's the Word

I had the strangest experience today. I decided to stop by the university greenhouse and pick up some mums as decorations for Carson's party next weekend. I took my time perusing the long aisles of brightly colored mums, thinking someone would be out to help me transport the giant pots to my van and write a ticket for me to pay inside. After nearly giving up and preparing to go inside to get someone to help me, I came across a woman, kneeling on the weed mat, working with a hose. I was still several feet away from her, when I asked if she would mind helping me with some flowers. She looked at me, put her head down, and continued her work. I tried again, asking if there was someone else who could help me. She again made eye contact, and said, "I water," then returned to her work. I decided to try one last time and asked her, "Is anyone else here?" She jumped up from her work, marched over to me and shouted, "I water! You yourself!" At this point I realized that she was an Asian student and determined that something was obviously getting lost in translation. I turned and quickly walked away, loaded my flowers, and went inside to find another worker. When I walked back outside, a lady with a thick Southern accent had arrived and was speaking to the Asian girl in a thick drawl, saying, " Sugar, could you fetch me some chrysanthemums?" The Asian girl hopped up, said, "Sure, " and fetched the woman's flowers. Weird. Even weirder is that tomorrow I'm going to work with a child who speaks only Chinese. Guess I'll turn on the Southern charm and hope for the best. Have a great Tuesday, Sugar.

Happy Birthday....on the road

The last two weeks have been an absolute blur. With Greg working out of town and me having a St.Louis doctor's appointment, a meeting in Jefferson City, and a trip to take Carson to see Greg overnight, I am exhausted. We'll start the process over on Monday morning. Carson is being farmed out to various relatives after school and often overnight while I work. He came stumbling into the living room half asleep one night last week, rubbing his eyes, to ask me where he was going the next morning and who he should look for to pick him up. Poor guy. On the bright side, Greg is officially half way through his training and will be home for good in two more weeks.

Because of this crazy scheduling, Carson is set to have the longest birthday celebration in history. We started off with an ice cream party for his class on Thursday, since school was out on Friday, his actual birthday. I picked him up after school and we drove to St. Charles to stay with Greg for the night. We visited Chuck E Cheese for dinner. I had never noticed before how much Chuck E's is like a little kiddie casino. It was packed with very overstimulated kids who had very little supervision. Definitely a once a year place for us. Friday morning, Carson opened his presents over breakfast in the hotel dining room, then he and I met my friend, Katie, at the St Louis Zoo for a beautiful day of visiting the animals. We drove home in time for dinner, and Carson chose to eat at Golden Gate, our favorite Chinese place in Jackson. On Saturday, he and Greg spent the afternoon launching Carson's new rocket, then we went to yet another birthday dinner with Grandma and Grandpa Penny. Tonight we'll be celebrating with Greg's parents, who returned from their cruise to Nova Scotia last night. We'll finish the celebrating with a hayride party next Sunday, where Carson will finally get to blow out some candles!

I am hoping to get to take some vacation days to stay with Greg and scrapbook in the hotel this week. I really want to get at least this year completed in an album and attempt to stay more on track with my scrapping. I may never get caught up on years past, but I would like to stay current from now on. (I'm probably dreaming!)

Have a fantastic week and enjoy the lovely weather if you're local!

Life Sucketh No More

Hello! I apologize for the very long delay in new posts. Frankly, life had been really sucking for me and my family for what felt like a very long time, and I really didn't feel like immortalizing all the crap on my blog. To those of you who have had the pleasure of hearing my tales of woe in person for the last several months, thanks for not telling me to suck it up and continuing to tolerate my whining.

First of all, the absolutely wonderful news that as of today, my mom is in remission! She had a scan this morning and what little bit of tumor is still there is expected to dissolve within 6 months. Her hair is growing back and she's feeling much better!

Second, Greg is working! He got a job working for SM&P Utility Resources as a technician. His job involves locating and marking utility lines. He is currently in training in St Louis during the week and will be home for good near the end of October.

We're starting to feel like life is back on track. Next week we'll be celebrating Carson's birthday on Friday with a trip to St Louis to visit Greg and a visit to either the Magic House or the zoo. The following week we'll celebrate with a hayride and birthday party at MeMaw and PawPaw Franklin's house.

Thanks for checking back in! Look for more frequent updates in the near future. Have a fantastic weekend!

A Short Update

So, we're still alive. Carson fell on our laptop and shattered the screen several weeks ago, hence no updates for many weeks. The new screen is scheduled to arrive tomorrow. Yay! I am making due with our ancient desktop computer, which does not allow for picture uploads and has a screen that is so dark, I can barely make out what is on it. Greg is still job hunting, but he had an interview on Wednesday and has another one tomorrow. We don't get too excited about interviews anymore, but we're hopeful that one of these opportunities will work out. This economy sucks. Carson started kindergarten at South Elementary two weeks ago, and has a completely awesome teacher. Things are going so much better than this time last year. I'll have a full report as soon as the new laptop screen arrives. Have a great Labor Day weekend!

What's Up, Buttercup?

We're still chugging along here at the Franklin house. Greg has fallen into the duties of Mr. Mom nicely. He has developed a new penchant for housecleaning and laundry that I am loving, although it is freaking me out a little bit to have the clothes I wore yesterday clean and hanging in my closet by the next morning. He also gets really cranky when I leave clothes in the hallway outside the bathroom. This role reversal has been quite the learning experience for us both.

Hopefully, this situation will be coming to an end soon, since Greg got two calls for interviews today. We'll be going to St Louis on Sunday for his interview Monday morning with a company he is really interested in. We're not moving. The job will be based in Cape. Please say a prayer for us that things will move quickly if this is the job he is meant to have.

Cason is begging me to take him to garage sales tomorrow, but I think it's going to be way too hot. I have scrapbooking tomorrow night and we have a bowling birthday party to go to on Saturday.

Carson had a great day today. He finished his last swimming lesson, then went to St. Mary with MeMaw and PawPaw. While there he got to drive the big tractor with Great Uncle Floyd and plant corn, then when he got out, the train was going by the farm and blew it's whistle at him. Trains and tractors in one day makes for such a great time when you're six.

Have a great Friday and a cool weekend.

You Say You Want a Revolution

Such interesting times. No explanations tonight. Just a note to myself to stay strong in my beliefs and honor my faith.

Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good; love one another with mutual affection; outdo one another in showing honor. Do not lag in zeal, be ardent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in suffering, persevere in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints; extend hospitality to strangers. Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly; do not claim to be wiser than you are. Do not repay anyone evil for evil, but take thought for what is noble in the sight of all. If it is possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave room for the wrath of God; for it is written, "Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord." No, "if your enemies are hungry, feed them; if they are thirsty, give them something to drink; for by doing this you will heap burning coals on their heads." Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
-Romans 12:9-21 (NRSV)

Firecrackers and Birthday Candles

My vacation has flown by! I'm back to work tomorrow. I'm ready to get back into a routine and back in the habit of exercising more regularly. Being on vacation was bad for the walking routine.

We celebrated the 4th at Marcia and Steve's house, as always. Marcia has been my mom's friend since junior high school, so our families have always celebrated together throughout the years. They put on a fantastic fireworks display and have tons of yummy food. (This may be a problem at my weigh-in tomorrow, but it was all soooo good!) I made a new recipe that was quite the hit. I decided to use some of the blueberries we picked a few weeks ago. Here it is:

Blueberry Pretzel Salad

2 cups of crushed roughly crushed pretzel crumbs

3/4 cup melted butter

3 Tbs sugar

Mix together and press into the bottom of a 9x13 pan. Bake at 350 for 8 minutes. Cool completely.

In a large pot, place:

4 cups blueberries

1/4 cup water

Bring to a boil and add:

3/4 cup sugar

2 Tbs cornstarch

Boil, stirring frequently until sugar is dissolved and mixture starts to thicken. Remove from heat and cool completely.

In a mixing bowl mix:

8oz softened cream cheese

1 cup sugar

8 oz carton of Cool Whip

When crust and blueberries are completely cool, top crust with with cream cheese mixture , then blueberries. Chill until served.

On Saturday we took my Grandma out to eat for her birthday at lunch, then went to Greg's parents' for a BBQ with his brother and nephew. Carson and Andrew had a blast soaking each other and everything in their path with water balloons.

Today we went to church, then hung out at home. Carson played in the pool and sprinkler with the girls next door and outside most of the day. Greg mowed and I did some laundry and watched some TV.

Here are some pictures from our weekend. This week we actually don't have anything on the calendar, other than my usual Weight Watchers and aerobics. Next weekend we have a family wedding shower on Saturday and a Campaign '08 houseparty at some friends' house on Sunday. Should be another fun weekend!